On March 23, 2001 President Shevardnadze issued Decree no. 107 On Political Support and Promotion of Implementation of the Project of Constructing the 2x125 MW Thermal Station Working on Tkibuli Coal in Tkibuli. The thermal station construction project provides an investment of US$30 million for the restoration of the coal industry in Tkibuli.

Coal is one of the most significant fuels recovered in Georgia, and Georgia possesses important reserves of coal. The proven reserves of coal account for approximately 450 million tonnes. The main reserves are situated on the coal deposits of Tkibuli-Shaori, 332 mln. tonnes, Akhaltsikhe coal deposit, 171 mln. Tonnes, and Tkvarcheli, 21 mln. tonnes. Coal played an important role in the development of the country. The infrastructure created for exploitation of coal deposits was concentrated in Tkibuli, Tkvarcheli, and Akhaltsikhe. Significant parts of the population of these regions and neighbouring areas were employed in the coal industry, and in enterprises related to it. The main consumers of coal in Georgia were such sectors of the economy like energy, represented by the thermal stations at Rustavi, Kutaisi and Tkvarcheli, and such branches of industry like metallurgy, for example the Rustavi metallurgical and Zestafoni Ferroalloys factories. A small portion of the coal was used for residential usage purposes. By the end of the 1980s, Georgia consumed 2.3 mln. tonnes of coal, whereas the consumption in the 1950s-70s amounted approximately to 3.4 mln. tonnes). The coal industry provided jobs for thousands of workers.

Nowadays only the Tkibuli-Shaori deposit is being exploited. The Akhaltsikhe mines have been closed, and the exploitation of the mine in Tkvartcheli was stopped because of the war in Abkhazia. If at the end of the 1980s 12000 workers were employed in coal industry, nowadays only 850 workers are engaged in the industry. On the Tkibuli-Shaori deposit, only two of a total of four mines are under exploitation. One of the reasons thwarting the restoration of the coal industry is that its consumers, that is major enterprises and industries, are either out of business or consume inexpensive fuel oil. The only way to restore and develop the coal industry is hence the construction of a thermal station of 220-250 MW volume, which will work on Tkibuli coal and will consume 450-600 thousand tonnes of coal per year. 

The main importance of the project lies in the prospect of the rehabilitation and further development of the Tkibuli coal mines, stimulation of industry, improvement of the socio-economic conditions in the region, and an important growth of employment through the creation of approximately 12-15,000 employment opportunities. Along with this, the project improves the conditions for energy security, and as a result, the political independence of the country. Development of the coal industry will facilitate an improvement of the country’s environmental condition. Based on the statistical data for residential customers, the annual consumption of wood for heating and cooking purposes equals one million  cubic meters of wood, compared to an annual consumption of coal amounting to 450,000 tonnes in previous years. This usage of wood has serious effects on Georgia’s flora, provokes the erosion of soil and an intensification of landslides, which brings difficulties to the country’s population.

Therefore, the restoration and development of Georgian coal industry is envisaged as necessary for several reasons: it is economically efficient, socially valuable, protects the environment, and provides national energy and security.

Zaza Gordeziani, Director, Scientific-Research  Institute of Mines, Geomechanics and Survey, Tbilisi, Georgia.